


Go Farther In Lightness

by watercolorwoman



Series: Persona Rarepair Week - Ryukoto [2]
Category: Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Angels & Demons, Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Minor Character Death, One Shot, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-25
Updated: 2020-11-25
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:21:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,444
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27711965
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/watercolorwoman/pseuds/watercolorwoman
Summary: Ryuji loved his job as a guardian angel. He was dedicated to bringing his humans into Heaven, helping others to become better people. Even when he was assigned evil humans by High Angel Kamoshida, he still wore the job like a badge of pride.Until a single sound changes the course of his life.Day 2 for Rarepair Week: Angel/Demon AU
Relationships: Niijima Makoto/Sakamoto Ryuji
Series: Persona Rarepair Week - Ryukoto [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2024488
Kudos: 15





	Go Farther In Lightness

Up in Heaven, things could get… difficult, at times. It wasn't that Ryuji didn't like being a guardian angel. No, he truly enjoyed the task. He took a lot of pride in helping people be on the right path, making the best decisions they could. Back when his old boss gave him new people to watch over, they were generally well behaved. There were a few mishaps, but Ryuji was considered one of the best for getting nearly all of his humans in Heaven, or at the very least Purgatory to move up later on. 

No, it was when his old boss stepped down and a new head angel, Kamoshida, took over. 

It was clear from the beginning Kamoshida hated Ryuji. With a scowl on his face, he never addressed him respectfully. Ryuji would be assigned to difficult criminals, heartless monsters with no morals or drive to even want to change, corrupt politicians with the goal of revoking as many human rights as possible. 

Ryuji started to loathe his job, especially when the death of a corrupt politician meant it was the tenth person Ryuji had overseen to go to Hell. And yet, Kamoshida was well respected among the other angels. 

"Are you sure you're not being paranoid? Maybe you just have a bad streak," Haru, a fellow guardian angel, asked him one day. The two were enjoying warm drinks at Haru’s apartment high above the clouds. 

"Nah man, he's got it out for me. I swear, one day I'm gonna prove it. I just don't know how…" Ryuji contemplates. "I'm just gonna be upfront and tell him to give me someone less wild, because ten in a row? Come on, I bet this new human I got is gonna be a mess too." 

She shrugs. "I hope you're right, because you are good at your job. I've seen what you can do with the humans, but maybe it's also getting into your head." 

Ryuji finishes his cup, setting it back on the table. He pushes himself against the table, the chair screeching as he does "Know what? I'm gonna talk to him right now. I know he's in his office, I got this."

Without another word, Ryuji flies off to find Kamoshida. There was only one place he would be this late in the evening: still in the office, working on assigning new humans to guardian angels. When he lands right outside, he sees a quick flash of black and blue from the corner of his eye. 

"What the…" He flips around, looking to see the source. There's nothing but the lights of buildings around him. Whatever it was, it must've been his imagination. 

Pulling the door open, it's quiet and dark in the hallways. With everyone home for the day, it was unlikely anyone but Kamoshida would be here. Seeing the light from his office, he steps inside. His office was big, far larger than what any of them had, with too many 'best angel's accolades then Ryuji believed he deserved. He clears his throat to garner his attention. The keyboard clicking stops, and Kamoshida's cheery face drops at the sight of Ryuji. 

"Oh. What do you want?" Kamoshida asks. Ryuji hated that tone of his voice, treating him like he was scum of the earth. 

"Look, I know ya don't like me, but can you stop putting me with the total assholes? We all know there's some people we can't fix and ya keep puttin' me with 'em." Ryuji pushes. Kamoshida's laugh echoes the room. 

"Kid, you ain't getting it. I'm in charge here, so I decide who gets - uh!" 

A sound pops. Kamoshida grabs his chest, blood quickly spilling out. Ryuji looks down, seeing red stains on his white outfit. The man collapses to the ground from his chair. 

Behind him was someone squatted down. With a black hat covering their hair and dark clothing, their face was mostly covered with a tight mask. All he could see were piercing red eyes. They held a radiant, glowing gun in their hand, the only one capable of killing angels like Kamoshida. They turn it at Ryuji, who holds his hands up immediately. 

"Give me one reason why I shouldn't kill you as well." They bark at him. Was it a woman? Their voice was way higher than he expected. 

"I didn't like him that much either and I swear I won't tell!" Ryuji panics. Looking at the horns on their head, Ryuji knew exactly who, or what, he was working with. Sure, Ryuji wasn't a perfect guardian angel, but he'd never kill anyone, and neither would any of the other angels. Demons from Hell on the other hand… those could kill. 

In the distance, sirens start to get closer and closer. The demon looks in the general direction of the sound, stopping their foot. A frustrated sound comes from the back of their throat.

"Sirens already?" They panic. "How would they - I swear if that Kaneshiro set me up -" They point to Ryuji. "How can we get out of here as quickly as possible?" 

"He's got some mini portal to Purgatory, when he's gotta pull people out and bring 'em here." Ryuji begins to dig through Kamoshida's belongings. It was a mess in his drawer, not that it surprised him. It was filled with random oddities and paperwork he assumed wasn’t important enough to be field away. As he searches, he feels the edge of the gun on his neck. Freezing, he slows down the search. 

"Keep looking. This is to make sure you know what you're fighting for." 

Ryuji scoffs, continuing to search through the drawers. "For what? My life? They're gonna pin this crime on me, I was the last guy here. Maybe I'm better off dead." 

The pressure on his neck releases slightly. He couldn't see them as he looked, but he was sure they were thinking about what he said. The truth was he didn't like Kamoshida, and people knew that. Unfortunately he had talked to Haru right before he went to see Kamoshida, and they’d rip that information out of her. So if he wound up dead, with Ryuji being the last one to see him, there would be hell to pay. Literally.

"Here we go," Ryuji pulls out a small device, dropping it on the ground near an empty wall. The portal whirls to life, a blue light filling the room. He sees the demon pull into themselves. Were they hesitating now? "They ain't gonna check in there, promise." 

They stare at him for a moment before grabbing his sleeve and dragging him in. As they go through it, the demon turns off the device and puts it in her pocket. Ryuji didn’t like that the demon was able to so easily turn it off and take it with them. It wasn’t the hardest tech to maneuver, but it should be foreign to a demon like them. It didn’t matter now however, not while they were in this place. 

Purgatory was… alright. It was empty, cold, and lonely. It wasn't his first time in here but it also wasn't the best place to be. Everyone had a different idea of what kind of repayment would be needed in order to reach Heaven.

Ryuji had seen people actively try to buy their way in the afterlife with money or items, others using it as a time to truly be better. None of it mattered in the end, since all worldly attachments were left behind so those trying to buy their way through were forced to reconsider their life paths. Aside from that, the space was what you made of it. Everyone's space looked different, but it took time to build into a world. 

With no ideas from either of them yet, it was just a cold empty space. 

“You didn’t have to pull me in! I coulda walked in myself." Ryuji shouts, fazed by the demon’s actions. He was already going to step into the portal with them. No point in him staying back right? But at least he wanted to do it on his terms. 

She pulls down her mask, and adjusts her hair. She was… really, really pretty. Like insanely pretty. He could feel his words choke in his throat, all confidence down the drain. She didn’t look like a normal demon. 

"You would’ve taken too long," She sighs, stuffing the hat and masks into her bag. "This is ridiculous. I'm stuck in Purgatory now because my boss is horrible. I don't know why I trusted him." 

"Uh, I don't either," He awkwardly adds, still admiring her full face. Sure, demons were pretty sometimes, but he'd never been this awestruck by one. 

"I guess we're stuck here for now. At least tell me your name." She asks him. With the anger leaving her voice, she seemed almost… normal? Horns aside, of course. Obviously it wasn’t any better for him, wings and all. 

"Ryuji. You?" 

"Makoto." She pauses for a moment, looking at Ryuji before speaking. "Thank you, for helping me back there. I'm surprised you were kind enough to do so. But is this… truly what Purgatory is like?" 

Ryuji straightens himself. He had to try and be kinda normal around her. "It changes over time. Some people don't stay long enough for it, but I've seen people with whole worlds here before Heaven finally takes them in."

“I see.” She responds, starting a slow walk in one direction. Her eyes stay up, looking up at the emptiness around them. 

"But uh, we never actually check on them." Ryuji admits. "It's more like a notification? Like they gotta hit some points, but we don't know who's here. That's why I figured this would work, they can't find us here."

She furrows her brows. “I understand how Purgatory works. Also, your statement of ‘points’ severely simplifies the process. It’s a complex chart of categories to check off, there are no ‘points’ involved.” How would she know any of that? It’s not like demons ever worked with those in between. He assumed the average demon wouldn’t know anything about it. 

"How do ya know how this works?” 

Makoto pauses. “I read in my free time.” Somehow he wasn’t entirely convinced. But he’d drop the subject, at least for now. It’s not like they were going anywhere after all. 

“So uh, anyway, I should tell ya the portal only goes to Heaven and Purgatory. So we’re kinda stuck here. We can go back whenever. But uh, I get a feeling you don't wanna go back right now and I don't either." Ryuji starts to panic at the end. Not because he’s stuck in Purgatory, but because he wasn’t sure of her reaction. Expecting anger, she instead keeps a blank face. 

"So we really are stuck here," She says softly, her eyes moving from the empty sky to the dark floor beneath them. Regret written across her face. "What an unfortunate turn of events." 

Punishments were always long, too long in the afterlife. Heaven or Hell, they made sure you were horribly punished for your crimes. Sure Ryuji knew he was innocent, but seeing the look on her face seemed to convince him she wasn’t expecting this outcome. He didn't want to see her this sad, this upset at how things worked out. All he wanted to do was make her happy, which in itself, was a weird feeling he wasn’t expecting to have. 

"At least we got each other right? And Purgatory ain't so bad the longer we stay here. It'll be like our own world." Ryuji offers up, trying to look at her in the eyes. "We can get to know each other a bit, make time fly." 

Makoto smiles. "I'd like that." 

\--

Over the next few years, the world around them changes slowly. One day it's a cloudy sky above, with a city concrete appearing beneath them. There are patches of grass here and there, but the concrete took up most of the area. As the world changed, they both slowly began to learn more and more about each other.

It takes time for Makoto to feel comfortable talking with him about her past. Ryuji was developing suspicions from the moment he realized she knew way too much about Purgatory. She would talk to him with more knowledge than any normal demon would have. Although, it takes years before she finally confirms the thought lingering in the back of his mind. 

“I fell.” She breaks their silence one day, while the two are resting in one of the patches of grass. “My wings were ripped off.” 

"What happened?" Ryuji asks, a warm breeze was on loop as it always was there. He appreciated the honesty, but was hoping for a less depressing reason for her to know so much about Heaven. Deep down he had hoped it was just her ‘reading in her free time’, but it couldn’t be that simple. 

"An angel pinned a crime on me, and I lost everything. I was like you before, a guardian angel. I loved my job...You mentioned you knew Haru right? We were best friends, and we often worked together. She was the only person I was able to say goodbye to. I gave her everything I couldn’t take with me. I miss her everyday.” 

Haru hadn’t mentioned Makoto before, but why wouldn’t she mention it. “Haru never talked about you.” 

“I told her not to.” Makoto says sadly. “Falling is a taboo topic, and I’d rather be forgotten over time than remembered for falling.” 

“So… why go and kill Kamoshida?” He bluntly asks. 

“I didn't want to be a killer, but Kaneshiro offered me a way. He’s a high ranking demon in Hell with ways to get Heaven to reconsider fallen angels. I was so desperate I thought I'd take the opportunity but he was clearly going to frame me from the start." She responds, her fingers going through the blades of grass. 

"That makes sense, I heard there’s some kinda way to do it." Ryuji says, "But uh, I guess with what happened to-" 

"Don't." She squeezes her eyes shut. "I know it's too late for me. I did what I thought was right and I can't fix it now." 

"Hey," She opens her eyes, his body much closer to hers. He places a hand on her shoulder, "If it helps at all, I think you're a good person. Angel or demon."

"...thank you, Ryuji."

\--

Buildings appeared more and more as time went on, it was clear their ideal temporary world was a small city. The cars followed after, and while the vehicles were just moving for the sake of it, they always stopped whenever Ryuji and Makoto were walking across streets. The world was in their hands. 

Their relationship became closer and closer as time wore on, allowing themselves to open up even more. 

"So what happened to Ren?" Makoto wonders. "Is he…?" The two were sitting at an empty coffee shop, right outside the storefront. Drinks would appear whenever they willed it, as would the small baked goods the two kept digging into. She had a small coffee cup in front of her, while his was hot chocolate. 

"No, he's still alive. At least, I think he is. We’ve been in here what, like fifty years? I think? He might be a middle-aged man but he was like three years old when I was still his angel. I bet Haru was assigned to him actually, her human had just passed away.” 

Makoto smirks. “Was she still assigned with Goro?” 

“I bet.” He brings the cup to his lips. “Damn demon is too good at his job, poor Haru. But ya know...” He trails off, thinking back to how he would've been great with Ren. But with Kamoshida always giving him horrible humans, of course he didn't stand a chance. 

"You wanted to be his guardian angel." Makoto sadly finishes his sentence. "I'm sorry you didn't get to enjoy the last few humans you worked with." 

"I just… ugh it just pisses me off!" He squeezes the pastry in his hand a little too hard, the crumbs flying around on his side of the table. "I just wanna help people be better! I know I can do it, but if ya put me with shitheads all the time I can't do anything!"

"Ryuji…" Makoto gasps. He looks up at her, a fearful face. He was already regretting the outburst.

"I'm sorry, I lost my cool. I just get really into it. I miss it sometimes." 

Makoto eyes his hand on the table, and reaches over to squeeze it lightly. It was the first time she'd actually touched him, but it meant everything to him in that moment. 

"You're a good person. Don't forget that." 

"...thanks Makoto." 

\--

The city eventually stops growing. They lose track of time. Ryuji knew Purgatory worked like that; either it's five minutes or a hundred years. It wasn't a big deal in the afterlife, since they had all of eternity. A hundred years felt like a drop in the bucket in Heaven, but here? He can’t tell. Truthfully, he missed Heaven. If it actually had been a hundred years, they might be more lenient with him and his involvement in the crime. Eventually, he'd have to go back, prove himself innocent...right?

"You want to go back?" Makoto asks, not looking at him. Sitting in an empty apartment they decided to claim together, she sat on one end of the room, with him at the other. The distance wasn't too bad, but with her tone, Ryuji felt like they were mountains apart. 

"I don't know. We could go back soon though," He says, half trying to convince himself. He couldn't stay here forever… could he?

"You don't sound certain yourself." She pushes back. When she finally looks up at him, she's crying. "I don't want to get punished." 

Ryuji thinks his options though: 

He could tell Makoto to stay alone here. But that would be horrible and if he didn't like the idea of being here alone, neither would she. It'd be worse after all the time they spent together. When you spend that much time with one person, the idea of being alone is crippling. 

He could bring her with him, but she'd pay for her crimes. Killing an angel was bad enough if you were an angel already. But a demon killing an angel? She would be forced into torture for eternity. 

On the flip side, he could take the fall for her. But he couldn't imagine being a demon. If it left her this tormented and scarred, how would he react to it? 

The last option he says out loud. 

"We could just stay forever. No one has to know we're here." Ryuji thinks out loud. Makoto freezes. "No one knows we're here. If they did, they woulda come for us by now." 

He wasn't sure if he could admit it to her, but she was still as beautiful as the day he met her. She was more than just a pretty face though. He was falling in love with her, everything about her made him feel safe and secure. She was so intelligent and interesting. So would staying with someone he loved this much really be that bad? 

"I suppose I hadn't considered that possibility. Honestly I kept thinking you were going to ask for the portal back and turn me in, but it's been so many years and yet," She holds her breath, wrapping her arms around herself for protection. "I'm still here. I can still make my own choices. You haven't taken advantage of me at all." 

"And I won't." He reassures her. "But uh, if we do stay here forever, that's a long time." 

Makoto laughs, getting up out of her seat. She walks over to him. "I think if you're willing to, then so am I." 

This felt like a confession. Ryuji stands up as well, walking to close the distance. They meet in the middle of their shared space, mere inches apart from each other. 

"Y-yeah. I want you - t-this!" Ryuji stammers back, already overthinking it. She reaches for his cheek, caressing it lightly. "Uh, but I also love you and if you don't feel the same that's okay. Shit, I guess I made this even more awkward." He rushes through his statement. 

"I love you too, Ryuji." The gap closes, the two kiss. They didn't know what the future held, whether it meant they'd be forced back or staying here forever. No matter the outcome, they'd do it together.

**Author's Note:**

> I got surprisingly invested in this AU. So much so, the Akeharu story I wrote for today can kind of be seen as a sequel of this. So if you liked this, and are willing to try Akeharu out, I'd recommend reading that story, 'Oblivion'


End file.
